akirby
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Posts posted by akirby
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As we discussed before, Ford really has to watch dealership geographic coverage as it closes down Lincoln dealers. I don't think many will travel 40 miles one way to get their Lincoln serviced. Lincoln just doesn't have that kind of desirability factor. Located correctly for maximum coverage, I believe Metro Detroit only needs about 6 Lincoln dealers as long as no one has to travel more than 10 miles or so one way. Most big cities in America would not need more than 4 Lincoln dealers as long as they are strategically placed. BMW sells over 200,000 vehicles/year with this approach.
First of all - Ford doesn't "close down" Lincoln dealers unless they want to be closed down.
Second - I believe that Lincoln would prefer to have 1 or 2 really nice dealerships in a city rather than 5 or 6 mediocre ones.
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I honestly believe the best Lincoln ever made is the MKT, if you don't look at it
.The first MKT reviews said it was better than the Audi Q7 both in terms of performance and interior quality/design/comfort.
It was a good first step as long as you only have to see it from the inside.
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And to think, back in 98 and again in 2000 when they gained the title of "highest" selling luxury carmaker, they did it with just 3 vehicles,
And I would hope that a car from TODAY has more features than 2002 too !!
What I meant was look at the 2013 MKZ compared to the other 2013 luxury competition - it's very competitive. If you look back at the 2002 LS or Town Car - the interiors were inferior and they did not have all of the same features as the other 2002 luxury vehicles.
Comparatively speaking the 2013 is way more competitive than any Lincoln vehicle has ever been.
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Don't forget LED adaptive headlamps.
Oops. Good catch.
I really don't understand the negativity towards Lincoln. Right now they have as many or more vehicles for sale than they've had at any point in the last 25 years.
The MKZ is BY FAR the best luxury vehicle Lincoln has ever produced. From a feature standpoint it compares very favorably with luxury cars costing way more. Compared to the 2002 Navigator, LS or Town Car it's not even close. And it will only get better with even more vehicles the next few years.
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See thats the problem RIGHT now...but looking down the road, its going to be different...just look at the new MKZ vs the Fusion.
No panoramic sunroof, V6, or heated or cooled seats in the Fusion, but you can get them in the MKZ.
Don't forget push button transmission, Lincoln Drive Control (electronic suspension) and THX audio.
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Or just to add a little detail to speculation. maybe each address can only appear once, and they can only include one name with each address?
I think it's just that only one name and address are allowed per household and they take the first one on the title. In this case the same name is first on both titles.
You'd think Ford could override that and use the second name for one vehicle.
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Not to mention the likelihood that Jetta buyers are a more homogenous lot, when compared with other makes, as respects driving habits.
I don't think that's true. I know a lot of Jetta buyers who are definitely straight......
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Are most diesels also manuals? Manual drivers tend to get higher than EPA average fuel economy.
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It sounds like you want a fusion platinum hybrid. Looking at the build and price site, most if not all platinum equipment is available on the SE hybrid.
Can't get the Sony sound system or Intelligent Access (push button start).
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Below is your statement. You did imply it affects a large® # of owners by stating your seat issue was a better example than my window switch reference. This implies the problem you've experienced is "better" because it's farther reaching and more common/wide-spread of an issue. You did state you don't understand why Ford hasn't fixed the problem, which basically implies it's an item Ford should address (fix).
And again, where did I say Ford would lose customers, or the world was going to end in any of my posts?
Minor issue or major issue are "all problems" irregardless of what the issue is. My window switch is becoming a costly minor issue, where as the 5.4L spark plug design was a costly major issue. I admit Ford should and has addressed the plug issue first. But just because the window switch is minor doesn't mean it shouldn't be addressed. I bet Toyota thought the floor mat issue and gas pedal issues were minor annoyances too at one point in time.
My annoyance was the fact that it's been happening for 25 years.
You seem to be incapable of understanding the difference between minor problems and major problems. Just because some owners are having problems doesn't automatically mean Ford has to drop everything and fix it immediately. In some cases it's better (from Ford's standpoint) to just replace the part a few times rather than redesign it. It all depends on the cost and how many units are affected and whether that part is destined to be used long term or not, etc. etc. It also depends on whether a new part is even available - especially when they're outsourced to suppliers.
And saying that a failure is "unacceptable" is ridiculous. Everything mechanical will fail at some point. A few minor issues are expected and not a big deal. More, bigger issues are a concern. Huge or frequent issues can be a big problem if they're not dealt with accordingly.
Look at lemons. Every mfr has them at some point. If they only have 1 out of 100K that's fantastic. 1 out of 10K is still pretty good. 1 out of 1000 isn't good. 1 out of 100 is terrible. 1 out of 10 is an absolute disaster.
It's all about perspective.
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I own both the Edge and MKX and there is a noticeable and valuable difference between the two, although not as significant as I expected mostly because the Edge is effectively a luxury vehicle as well.
That's more true now, but not so much on the 07-10 models. I actually liked the 08 Edge better than the 08 MKX. The only advantages other than styling were the THX stereo and cooled seats.
They're doing a much better job now.
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My local dealer is telling me they will start getting the 2013's in stock anyday now. I kind of don't believe them. What has everyone else been hearing?
Not possible. They just started Job 1 a few days ago. The plant must build error free vehicles for 5 days in a row before they give the OK to Buy order. If they go 4.5 days and have a problem, the 5 day clock starts over. This can take 2-3 weeks in some cases. During this time all vehicles are held and must be inspected before actually being shipped and in some cases repaired. Once they get the OKTB they can start shipping newly built units. I believe they are holding all retail (sold) orders until OKTB so they don't get stuck in a lot somewhere waiting on repairs for 2 months.
They won't start shipping for at least a week and could be a few weeks depending on how many problems are found.
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That would be correct.
Have you tried unpairing both phones, rebooting the phones and re-pairing? Perhaps the bluetooth ids got switched around?
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Dude. You try to discredit my claim, by using some 5% figure (where ever you pulled that out from), then start talking a problem you've experienced like it's more problematic and yada. Maybe the loose seat tracks only impacts 2% of vehicles but you are frustrated and want to gripe about it? Sound familiar? Double standard?
So if the switch only fails 5% of the time, damn I must have the worst luck in the world, along with some of the people on these forums who've replaced their multiple times too. My original switch was built in '06, the 2nd switch built in '08, 3rd switch in '10 and my latest switch that has yet to fail (only installed last Friday) was built in '11. The chances of me getting 3 bad switches (5%) of all switches made, those are some one in a million chances.
Go ahead, continue to attempt to dismiss Ford problems, I'm used to your stance. Me, I'm gonna call a spade a spade, regardless of make, model, political stance or what not. If there is a problem, I have no issues admitting it's a problem, not attempt to sugar coat and side step the issue. Just because the rest of my F150 has been practically flawless, does not in any way mean my window switch issue is non-existent.
Did I imply that it affects a large number of owners? No. Could just be me.
I said it was annoying. I did not imply that it's something that Ford has to fix. I did not imply that if Ford does not fix it that it will cause big problems. I did not imply they would lose customers. I did not imply that the world is going to end if it's not fixed.
That's the difference between the negatards and the rest of us who are able to keep problems in perspective and understand the difference between an annoyance, a minor issue and a major issue.
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I had to replace the heater core transfer assembly on my Sable this winter. The Ford dealership here in town carries this item in stock because it has a high rate of failure. Ford did not re-engineered the part, despite its installation on millions of DN101 vehicles from '96-'06.
Not every problem is worth spending money to solve.
And just because it's reported on several forums doesn't mean that the failure rate is high (as a percentage of overall sales). From Ford's perspective this part may only fail on 5% of vehicles which is enough to say it's common and for it to be widely reported but that doesn't mean it affects every vehicle or enough vehicles for Ford to make a change.
If you want a better example - Ford SUVs and Crossovers continue to have problems with loose seat tracks. I had this problem on my 93 Explorer and I have it now on my 08 Edge. I don't understand why they haven't fixed this problem in 25 years. It's a little frustrating.
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but I don't actually see a really good product plan yet.
And you won't. Ford, unlike some others, doesn't show their cards in advance. Lack of information doesn't mean they're not working on it.
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This is the smart, fiscally responsible way to reinvent the brand. Not the sexiest but the smartest. Bringing out a halo car right now with the current dealer infrastructure would be a disaster.
They don't need to "target" anybody - just build some great looking vehicles with good performance and luxury features and upgrade the dealership experience.
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Don't forget that was an early pre-production car built for the auto show last winter. Actual components planned for each trim level might not have been finalized at that time.
This ^^^^
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The Hybrid looks a little bare on the interior. Don't these cars come with the Sony system? The MFT system (if this model has it) doesn't look right. Perhaps this is the bare bones system since it's pre-production?
I also understood that the hybrid comes with a IA/PS feature similar to the Focus Electric cars.
The hybrid is based on the SE model - no Sony radio available. Ford on facebook said the hybrid gets push button start but it's not in the order guide or the pictures.
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Maybe because of the way you and some others attempt to dismiss practically any Ford issue. Again, I don't attempt to make a mountain into a mole hill, nor do I do the reverse. But if there is an issue, and there are enough documented owners experiencing the issue and dealers are familiar with the problem, it's just not a blip on the radar. A random issue here/there is one thing and can be dismissed mos the time. As more and more owners experience said issue, then it's much harder to dismiss. Well, for most people other than yourself, which appears you can dismiss practically any issue a Ford product may have.
You see a problem that affects some vehicles and you assume that the problem is widespread (based on a few posts in an online forum) and that it's a big problem for Ford and that Ford is losing customers because of it and the world is coming to an end.
Other people read the same forums and see some problems but put them into the bigger context with a little perspective.
Nobody is saying that these problems don't exist - just that they aren't the end of the world.
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I'm inclined to pay attention to what AN reports, but this sounds like Captain Obvious reporting for duty. I'm sure Ford is considering lots of things that will never make it into US production; after all, you have to consider an idea before you can dismiss it...
Exactly. I'm sure Ford considers diesels for North America at least once a year, maybe more often. Just like they consider whether they should bring other vehicles and drivetrains to the U.S.
Somebody at Ford knows exactly how much it would cost for a Diesel Focus and how many they could realistically sell and at what price.
Diesel fans don't buy VWs and Audis. Audi and VW fans buy diesels.
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Yes, it should be covered.
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This just means they can only put one name in their database for recall (and junk mail) purposes.
And apparently his wife is the registered owner for both vehicles.
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My folks are pretty well off. They still roll around in a '98 Avalon and stripper '08 Trailblazer. :lol:
And that's why they're still pretty well off.
Chrysler 300 Tops Ford/GM in CR Study
in Competing Products
Posted
Ford did the only thing they could afford to do at the time. Where were they supposed to get a new platform back then?
That's also why I don't see D3 being viable for sedans going forward.